After over a month's hiatus, the BWF World Tour resumes with an exciting three-week lineup of tournaments across Asia, starting with the TOYOTA Thailand Open 2024 this week – the tour will then continue with the PERODUA Malaysia Masters 2024, the KFF Singapore Badminton Open 2024, and the Indonesia Open 2024.
The Thailand Open kicked off today with qualification rounds and some first-round matches. Among the early highlights, the Danish duo Mads Vestergaard/ Christine Busch, seeded eighth, won a tough three-game battle against Chinese Taipei’s Ming Che Lu/ Hung En-Tzu, 21-11, 14-21, 21-18.
Top seed Anders Antonsen, Denmark, will be facing Hong Kong’s Ng Ka Long Angus in his opening match, while Mads Christophersen and Magnus Johannesen, who both secured bronze at the STATE Denmark Challenge presented by RSL last week, will also be competing in the main draw.
Belgium’s Julien Carraggi and Lianne Tan are also playing in Bangkok this week, with Tan being one of the only Europeans in the women's singles draw alongside Azerbaijan’s Keisha Fatimah Azzahra.
With strong local contenders participating, the Thailand Open features top Thai players competing on home soil. In the men’s singles, reigning world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn, seeded fourth, has a challenging first match against Denmark’s Rasmus Gemke. In the women's singles, local favourites Ratchanok Intanon and Pornpawee Chochuwong are seeded fourth and eighth, respectively.
Top seeds Dechapol Puavaranukroh/ Sapsiree Taerattanachai lead the home charge in the mixed doubles, while in the men's and women's doubles categories, European presence includes the Scottish Grimley brothers as well as Ukraine’s Polina Buhrova/ Yevheniia Kantemyr, who advanced to the second round by walkover.